Jean-Jacques d'Esparbès (or Desparbès; 12 January 1720 – 13 March 1810) was a French soldier who was briefly Governor of

Saint-Domingue Saint-Domingue () was a French colony in the western portion of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, in the area of modern-day Haiti, from 1659 to 1804. The name derives from the Spanish main city in the island, Santo Domingo, which came to refer ...

in 1792 during the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

Life

Jean-Jacques d'Esparbès was born on 12 January 1720. He married a cousin of

Madame de Pompadour Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Marquise de Pompadour (, ; 29 December 1721 – 15 April 1764), commonly known as Madame de Pompadour, was a member of the French court. She was the official chief mistress of King Louis XV from 1745 to 1751, and rema ...

. He was made ''

maréchal de camp ''Maréchal de camp'' (sometimes incorrectly translated as field marshal) was a general officer rank used by the French Army until 1848. The rank originated from the older rank of sergeant major general ( French: ''sergent-major général''). Se ...

'' on 25 July 1762, and lieutenant general on 1 March 1780. He commanded the 20th Military Division at

Montauban Montauban (, ; oc, Montalban ) is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department, region of Occitania, Southern France. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse. Montauban is the most populated town in Tarn-et-Garonne, an ...

in July 1790. D'Esparbès was appointed governor of Santo Domingo in 1792 and accompanied three new civil commissars to the island,

Léger-Félicité Sonthonax Léger-Félicité Sonthonax (7 March 1763 – 23 July 1813) was a French abolitionist and Jacobin before joining the Girondist party, which emerged in 1791. During the French Revolution, he controlled 7,000 French troops in Saint-Domingue during pa ...

Étienne Polverel Étienne Polverel (1740–1795) was a French lawyer, aristocrat, and revolutionary. He was a member of the Jacobin club. In 1792, he and Léger Félicité Sonthonax were sent to Saint-Domingue to suppress the slave revolt and to implement the de ...

and

Jean-Antoine Ailhaud Jean Antoine is a French given name. Notable people with the name include: * Jean-Antoine Alavoine (1778–1834), French architect * Jean Antoine de Baïf (1532–1589), French poet * Jean-Antoine Carrel (1829–1891), Italian mountain climber * ...

. He was to replace governor

Philibert François Rouxel de Blanchelande Philippe François Rouxel, viscount de Blanchelande (21 February 1735 – 15 April 1793) was a French military officer, nobleman and colonial administrator who served as the governor of Saint-Domingue from 1790 to 1792. He was born on 21 Febr ...

. The expedition included 6,000 soldiers. The future governor

Étienne Maynaud de Bizefranc de Laveaux Étienne Maynaud de Bizefranc de Laveaux (or Mayneaud, Lavaux; 8 August 1751 – 12 May 1828) was a French general who was Governor of Saint-Domingue from 1793 to 1796 during the French Revolution. He ensured that the law that freed the slaves was ...

was lieutenant-colonel in command of a detachment of 200 men of the 16th regiment of dragoons. They reached Cap-Français (now Cap-Haïtien) on 18 September 1792. The commissioners found that many of the white planters were hostile to the increasingly radical revolutionary movement and were joining the royalist opposition. The commissioners announced that they did not intend to abolish slavery, but had come to ensure that free men had equal rights whatever their color. D'Esparbes worked against the commissioners and became popular with the royalist planters. On 21 October 1792, the commissioners dismissed d'Esparbès and named the vicomte de Rochambeau governor general of Santo Domingo. Both D'Esparbès and his predecessor Blanchelande were deported to France. D'Esparbès was accused of disloyalty on 4 February 1793, but was acquitted by the

Revolutionary Tribunal The Revolutionary Tribunal (french: Tribunal révolutionnaire; unofficially Popular Tribunal) was a court instituted by the National Convention during the French Revolution for the trial of political offenders. It eventually became one of the ...

on 27 April 1793 and withdrew from public life. He died on 13 March 1810.

Work

Surviving writings by d'Esparbès include: * * * *

Notes

Sources

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Esparbes, Jean Jacques d' 1720 births 1810 deaths French generals Governors of Saint-Domingue